New Delhi, 09 April (H.S.):

Indian stock indices opened lower on Thursday, as lingering concerns over a possible breakdown of the US–Iran ceasefire in West Asia triggered a bout of risk aversion across the domestic market. The BSE Sensex and Nifty 50 both slipped into the red within the first hour of trading, with shallow recoveries erased by renewed selling pressure as investors took profit after a sharp rebound in the previous session.

Weak start on Middle East‑driven caution

The 30‑share BSE Sensex commenced the session at 77,319.33, down 243.57 points (‑0.31%), after a buoyant close the day before. Within the first 10 minutes, buying interest briefly lifted the index by about 110 points to 77,429.33, but the gain was short‑lived. As broader global cues soured on fears of renewed Middle East hostilities, full‑fledged selling pressure returned, and by 10:15 a.m. IST, the Sensex had slumped 705.41 points to 76,857.49—a fall of roughly 0.91% from its opening level.

On the NSE, the 50‑share Nifty 50 opened at 23,909.05, down 88.30 points (‑0.37%). Early buying drove the benchmark as high as 23,990.75 before sellers regained control. By the same time, Nifty had pared earlier gains and was trading at 23,848.15, down 149.20 points (‑0.62%), as the mood turned cautious amid global jitters and a modest rise in crude‑oil prices.

Breadth and sectoral picture

Market breadth in the opening hour remained tilted to the downside. Of the 2,767 actively traded stocks tracked, 1,060 were in the green while 1,707 traded in the red, reflecting a clear dominance of selling over buying. On the Sensex, only seven of the 30 constituents held gains, while 23 slipped into negative territory. The Nifty 50 was similarly weak, with 18 stocks in the green and 32 in the red.

Among the brighter spots in the opening session were Hindalco Industries, Max Healthcare, NTPC, Bajaj Auto, and Bharat Electronics, which posted gains of 1.45% to 2.92%, benefiting from resilient domestic‑growth and infrastructure‑themed demand. On the flip side, Infosys, Shriram Finance, Larsen & Toubro, InterGlobe Aviation, and Jio Financial Services slipped by 1.43% to 2.30%, hit by global‑risk‑off flows and profit‑booking in recent outperformers.

Reversal from a sharp prior‑day rally

The negative start today stands in sharp contrast to Wednesday’s rally, when the Sensex surged 2,946.32 points (3.95%) to close at 77,562.90, while the Nifty 50 jumped 873.70 points (3.78%) to end at 23,997.35, on the back of the ceasefire announcement and hopes of stabilizing crude‑oil prices.

With West Asia‑related uncertainty now resurfacing, markets are once again discounting the risk of elevated energy prices, inflationary pressure, and external‑sector headwinds, all of which could weigh on corporate earnings and growth expectations in the months ahead.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar